


Stars Will Align For Us

by 2tiedships2



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alpha Liam, Alpha Louis, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Beta Niall, Fluff, M/M, No Smut, Omega Harry, Pining Harry, Strangers to Lovers, brief mention of omega zayn, except for the whole pining bit, lots of fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-20
Updated: 2018-03-20
Packaged: 2019-04-04 22:57:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 15,865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14030685
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/2tiedships2/pseuds/2tiedships2
Summary: "The serial monogamist is single," Niall said by way of introduction when he sat down across from Harry in the canteen.Harry sipped his chocolate milk. "What are you going on about?""Your alpha dream boat," Niall said. "That tiny little footie player? I heard from Hannah that he's broken it off with his boyfriend so he’s single and ready to flamingle. Now's the time to make your move."Harry sipped his chocolate milk harder to keep himself from replying.Or the one where Harry is an omega at a loss of how to get past his pining and gain the attention of Louis...especially considering the alpha is always in a relationship.





	Stars Will Align For Us

**Author's Note:**

> This work is dedicated to [Emmi](http://londonfoginacup.tumblr.com) who gave me the first few lines. Hopefully the remainder of the fic does them justice.
> 
> Thank you to my lovely betas [Kelli](http://jimmytfallon.tumblr.com) and [Mary](http://toujoursetpourjamais.tumblr.com)!
> 
> Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. I have no association with the band One Direction and those surrounding them, please don't share this work with anyone in the band.
> 
> Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy!

"The serial monogamist is single," Niall said by way of introduction when he sat down across from Harry in the canteen.   
  
Harry sipped his chocolate milk. "What are you going on about?"   
  
"Your alpha dream boat," Niall said. "That tiny little footie player? I heard from Hannah that he's broken it off with his boyfriend so he’s single and ready to flamingle. Now's the time to make your move."   
  
Harry sipped his chocolate milk harder to keep himself from replying.

“Harry,” Niall continued, “I know what you’re thinking.”

“No, you don’t,” Harry said. “Unless you are also wondering why you’re talking like you swallowed a dictionary meant for scripting a romantic comedy. Also, his name is Louis, and you know it. Stop calling him the serial monogamist.”

Niall scoffed. “First of all, I pick these terms up from you, and second of all, he literally is a serial monogamist, so there’s no point in saying he’s not. I mean, in a way it’s nice how he wants to keep a steady relationship with one person. But as you’ve noticed, his relationships don’t really last long.”

Harry glared at him. “He just hasn’t found his omega is all. There’s nothing wrong with moving on to someone else.”

Niall gave a sly smile. “Someone like you, right?”

Harry’s chocolate milk was gone, but he pretended that it wasn’t to avoid eye contact.

Niall continued, “We need a plan. We need a plan immediately.”

“Stop trying to play matchmaker, Niall.”

“I’m not! The match has already been made.” Niall wiggled his eyebrows. “I am Cupid. My bow is ready to shoot you both in the ass if you don’t get your shit together and realize that you’re mates.”

“We’re not…” Harry’s voice faded as he noticed Louis walking into the room, chatting, or probably flirting, with someone that Harry had never seen before. Harry didn’t like to assume, but he couldn’t help thinking that the guy was probably an omega, and just like most of Louis’ other conquests, about the same size as Louis himself. Niall was incorrect in saying he was tiny, or little, but Harry couldn’t deny the fact that he had never seen Louis in a relationship with someone more than an inch taller.  Harry had quite a few inches over Louis; he stood no chance.

“Who’s that?” Harry inquired about the guy with Louis.

“I think his name is Drew. Maybe a first year?”

Harry jumped as Liam set his tray down, sliding in next to him.  

“Nope, he’s a third year. He was scouted from another school and transferred here for football.”

Harry looked back over to where Louis was laughing at something Drew had said. The entire football team consisted of alphas, but he didn’t think there were rules against betas and omegas joining. Drew had a smaller build like Louis. What he if was an omega? He groaned to himself and dropped his head into his hands.

Harry figured Liam had noticed as he questioned, “What’s wrong with you, Harry?”

Niall was the one to speak for him. “Louis is single. He broke it off with what’s-his-name and, as usual, is looking for his next relationship. His next, and final, relationship is going to be with Harry.  The stars are aligning, I can feel it.”

Harry looked up and glared at him. “You’re not helping, Niall.”  

“But I’m going to,” Niall stated. “And so is Liam.”

Harry turned to Liam who was raising his eyebrows at Niall.

“I am?” Liam inquired.

Niall sighed. “Yes. We are not allowing Harry to disregard every alpha that shows him interest just so he can sit around and pine after Louis. Our first year of that was bad enough. I’m not allowing it to continue.”

Harry waved his hand in front of Niall’s face. “I’m right here you know, I can hear you.”

Niall batted his hand away and placed his focus back on Liam.

“So, Liam, our favorite footballer. You are no longer a newbie on the team which means you can stop being self conscious about the amount of people you invite. I vote that Harry and I be put on the list of invitees and join you at your next event. Harry is wanting to attend.”

Harry spluttered. “I what??”

“There’s a party tomorrow night to welcome Drew to the team,” Liam advised. “Just a lowkey event that you guys could come to.”

Harry had to admit that he was slightly intrigued, and very unsure.

Harry looked to Liam and asked, “Will there be omegas there as well?  Aren’t all the team members alphas?”

Liam looked unsure how to respond. “I mean, yeah, everyone on the team is an alpha, but there will be betas and omegas there as well.”

Niall beamed. “Don’t worry, we’ll look out for you Harry. So will Louis.”

Harry scoffed. “Louis doesn’t even know I exist.”

“Maybe not today, but he will after tomorrow night!”

\----

It was Friday and Harry stood in front of the mirror wondering what the night would bring. It was slightly frightening as he knew he would be one of the few omegas in a room full of alpha footballers. It was nice of Liam to have made the invite, even if it was prompted by Niall. As a first year, Harry knew Liam had been wary of bringing his friends. From their previous conversation the day before he could tell that Liam no longer felt he needed to hold back in his invite. He just seemed a little unsure on how Harry would be outnumbered.

Harry had no issues with being an omega, he just wished he had the body type of the typical male omega. Before he presented, his family and friends figured he was beta. It seemed like he would grow to have the build as an alpha, but he didn’t have the countenance of one. Harry’s growth spurt started before he presented, so he agreed with his family’s opinion that he was beta. At least, until he broke out into his first heat.  

So here he was, watching on as alphas mated with omegas that were always smaller. Harry knew he had a mate somewhere in the world, and he occasionally prayed that it would be Louis, but he wasn’t going to hold his breath.  

Harry thought back to the previous day as he watched Louis come in the room with Drew and how Harry’s immediate reaction was to assume that Drew was omega and Louis was flirting with intentions of a potential relationship. At the very least, he knew Drew was an alpha, thanks to Niall’s inquiry with Liam. Harry let out a mental sigh of relief at that. Louis was still single, for the moment.

\----

The party wasn’t far from Harry and Niall’s flat, so they walked, meeting Liam halfway. Once they arrived, Harry looked around to find this was not a lowkey event as Liam had alluded to. There were people spilled out onto the front lawn, and upon walking inside they found a DJ station as well as a makeshift dance floor filled with people.  

Harry followed Liam and Niall as they squeezed past people, making their way into the kitchen for a drink. There was an incredible variety to choose from.

“Liam?” Harry asked. “I thought you said this was going to be lowkey. Is this considered lowkey?”

Liam looked around as if he had not noticed the amount of people he had to walk around to get into the kitchen.

“I thought it was meant to be lowkey.” Liam furrowed his brows. “Apparently not?”

Niall gave a bright laugh. “Apparently not, Liam. You might want to double check your sources next time.”

Liam looked around again and stated, “I’m going to go find Zayn. Will you guys be okay?”

Niall gave a thumbs up while pouring himself a drink. Harry wasn’t sure, but placed a smile on his face and waved Liam away.  

Harry turned back to find Niall holding out a red solo cup.  

“Only one cup, Harry. Your tolerance is too low and I don’t want to be dragging you home.”

He was right. Despite being bigger than the average omega, his tolerance level of alcohol was still extremely low. 

Harry nodded and took the offered beer. Once Niall released it into Harry’s hands, he was waving to someone behind Harry’s back.  

Niall nudged him and whisper-yelled, “Harry! That’s Barbara! You remember her, right?”

“Of course. Your personal dream boat.” Harry fluttered his eyelashes and gave a dreamy expression.  “It was in the stars that she is here tonight.”

Niall rolled his eyes. “Shut up. I’m going to go say hi. Will you be okay?”

Harry nodded. “I’m good, yeah. Go get the love of your life.”

Niall moved to meet Barbara, but stopped before proceeding. “Harry, if you don’t talk to Louis by the time the night is over, I’m kicking you out and you’ll have to live on the street.”

Harry scoffed. “How am I even supposed to find him in all these people? There’s no way.”

“First of all, I got us into this party for a reason.”

Harry glanced over his shoulder to Barbara and raised his eyebrow at Niall.

“I did  _ not _ know she would be here. Like you said, it must be in the stars we are both meant to find the love of our life tonight. Also, Liam assured me that Louis would be here. You never seem to miss an opportunity to find him in crowds, so I’m sure you’ll do just fine. Just, this time,  _ talk _ to him.”

Harry couldn’t hold in his laughter. He shook his head and pushed Niall in the direction of his dream boat.

Niall gave a fleeting look of concern before moving forward.

Harry sighed dramatically. “I’m fine, Niall. I’ll text you if I need anything. I’ll go find Louis and we’ll be mated by the nights end.”

Niall cackled and left to greet Barbara.

\----

Harry did want to find Louis, if only to see what he chose to wear and if his hair was styled in a quiff or if he had his fringe perfectly imperfect. However, the longer he stood in the kitchen the more uncomfortable he became with his surroundings. He didn’t feel unsafe like smaller omegas might, but the smell of all of the alphas was becoming overwhelming.  

He moved to go out onto the balcony for some fresh air. As he stood at the end of the balcony he wondered what it would be like if he were to find his mate and bond. His mother had once told him that the smells of unmated alphas would not be as overwhelming once bonded, that his inner omega would solely seek out his alpha’s scent and all other alpha scents would in turn be dimmed.

Harry took another sip of his beer and when he looked back up he found a guy staring at him from the other side of the balcony. It was dark, only the lights of the house shining out onto the balcony, but Harry could tell the guy was an alpha, if only by the look in his eyes. A look of hunger. A look that told Harry’s omega instincts to run.

He dropped everything and moved as quickly as he could back into the house. He didn’t think he would be followed or taken advantage of in an atmosphere such as this, but he had no way to know. He had never been in this situation. He found his way up the stairs and amazingly found the first unlocked door to be the bathroom.  

Closing the door behind him, Harry moved to sit on the closed toilet seat. He felt bad for interrupting Niall’s time with Barbara, but talking to Louis would have to take place at another time. Preferably not in a house full of alphas.  

He reached into his pocket for his phone and found that it was empty. Harry thought back and realized he must have set it on the balcony ledge with his drink before he took off. He was trapped. He was trapped in a house full of alphas, most of them nice, but clearly not all of them.  

Just then, the door swung open. Harry let out an undignified yelp, jumped up, and moved to flatten himself on the wall between the toilet and bathtub. A toilet was definitely not going to protect him, or provide any sort of barrier, but he hadn’t had the time to process that. As his body remained in high alert, spine stiff against the wall, he found himself looking into eyes of Louis Tomlinson.

“Um.” Louis blinked in surprise. “Sorry, I figured the door would be locked if someone was in here.”

Harry was in a state of shock and fear, his body remained silent and unmoving.

Louis seemed slightly unsure whether he should stay or leave, but decided on the latter.

“Sorry again,” Louis frowned. “I’ll leave you to it.”

He turned to leave, but before he could close the door, Harry called out. 

“Please don’t leave!”

Louis hesitantly turned around, slowly moved back into the bathroom, and without a word shut the door, locking it behind him.

Harry may have had a longstanding crush on Louis, but in reality he didn’t know much about him beyond his beautiful looks. Harry knew he was excellent at football, always seemed so carefree, had plenty of friends and was always in a relationship. 

He had also never been in an enclosed space with him like he currently was. All of the other scents from the house seemed to clear and they were replaced with a dark cinnamon scent.  

Louis’ face held a look of concern and he asked, “Are you hurt? Did someone hurt you?”

“No. Um, no. I’m okay.”  

“You don’t look to be physically abused, but I don’t think you’re okay, love,” Louis frowned. “You’re stiff as a board trying to blend in with the wall.”

“I’m sorry. I’m really sorry.”

Louis gave a tentative smile, reached out and took Harry’s right hand, giving a light tug to lead Harry out from between the toilet and bathtub. He gently led Harry to move to sit back on the toilet seat as he was before barging in.

“I’m so sorry,” Harry repeated. “I should have locked the door. I’m sorry.”

He was looking down at the ground to avoid any eye contact with Louis. His emotions were in a state of turmoil from the alpha on the balcony. Now, he was also mortified. He was supposed to talk to Louis, make a good impression, catch his attention somehow. This was  _ not _ how the night was meant to go and he immediately knew he would never be able to face Louis Tomlinson again.  

Harry wanted to drop. Or at least his omega instincts wanted to drop. He desperately wanted to get out of this situation and that was the easiest path to take. Damn the consequences.  

Immediately after the thought crossed his mind, he felt Louis clamp his hand into Harry’s right bicep and his left hand moved through Harry’s curls, yanking his hair back so Harry was forced to look up into Louis’ eyes. It hurt like a bitch, but he made no move to try to get Louis to release him. 

“You will not drop,” Louis stated.

Harry unintentionally let out a whimper. This was not how the night was supposed to go. Harry needed out. He needed to escape now.

Louis managed to dig his fingers tighter into his bicep, yanking his hair even harder.

“You will not drop,” Louis stated, adding a hint of alpha into his voice.

Harry couldn’t move his head but he must have blinked in a way that Louis knew Harry would follow his command and he dropped his arms.

“Ow,” Harry simply stated, rubbing his hands against his bicep and trying to massage his skull. Harry went back to apologizing. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” He looked back down to avoid eye contact with Louis. “You don’t even know me, yet you’re here playing alpha to a weak omega.”

Louis knelt down on the ground so Harry couldn’t avoid his eyes. Louis ran his hands soothingly back and forth on top of Harry’s thighs.

“You are not a weak omega,” a smile played on Louis’ lips. “Something happened that frightened you and that does not make you weak. Does this happen often?”

Harry shook his head. “No, not since high school.”

“Then you are definitely not a weak omega. You are in a household filled with alphas and I’m guessing that one or more of them set your omega instinct off. That’s completely understandable.  And then another alpha barges in on you when you’re trying to collect yourself, making it even worse.”

Harry shrugged his shoulders. He desperately wanted to go home and hide forever.  

Louis was still running his hands up and down his thighs, smiling up at him.  

“Are you okay now?” 

Harry again shook his head. “No, I’m mortified that this happened. I am going home and immediately dropping out of school.”

Louis smiled at him and took his hand, giving it a light squeeze. “Don’t be mortified or embarrassed, Curly. I’ll be sad if I never see you again.”

Harry let out a sad laugh. “Yeah, right.”

“I don’t lie. Well, mostly. I’m not lying about that though.” Louis gave him another smile and Harry could see the truth in his eyes.

“Now, Curly. How else can I help you? And don’t protest because it won’t make a difference.”

Harry couldn’t help but sigh in defeat. “I guess I should tell my friends where I am. I kind of left my phone outside though when I ran. It’s probably gone by now.”

“We’ll find it. Even if I have to interrogate every last person here, I’ll find it.” Louis gave a nod of finality at that statement and continued, “Okay, who did you come with? We’ll start with that.”

“Niall and Liam. Well, you probably haven’t met Niall, so I guess Liam would be my emergency contact in this case.”

Louis nodded and said, “Well, it just so happens I have all the team members numbers so that’s easy enough. Do you want me to call or text? Are you ready to leave the safety of this beautiful bathroom?”

“Yes, I’m ready. A text should be fine.”

Louis sent off a text and moved to stand up, his phone pinging before he was fully upright.

Louis glanced down. “Wow, Liam is attentive to his phone. He said he’ll be up in a moment.”

“Louis?” Harry bit his lip, a nervous habit. “Do you think you could not say anything about the drop? Or the almost drop? Both Liam and Niall will team up and kill me. You’re right. I’ve always refused to be an omega who elects to drop if something doesn’t go my way.”

“Your secret is safe with me. On one condition.”

Harry raised his eyebrow in question, prompting him to continue.

“You must first tell me your name.”

Harry gave a timid smile. “Harry. Harry Styles.”

“Okay, Harry Styles. Your secret is now officially safe with me.”

Louis gave him a wink precisely when there was a knock at the door. Harry stood up and moved towards the exit, Louis hanging back in order to let Harry leave on his own.

Harry looked behind him before opening the door and found Louis smiling at him in a way he had never seen before, eyes so bright and lovely, with Louis’ signature crinkles by his eyes. Harry hoped that his smile reflected his gratitude.

With that thought in his mind, he opened the door to find Liam leaning against the wall with concern in his eyes.

“Don’t give me a concerned look, Liam. I’m fine. Can we go home though?”

Liam didn’t push the issue but merely responded, “Yeah, let’s find Niall and we’ll head out.”

\----

It was Sunday afternoon and Harry still didn’t have his phone. On the plus side, it made it easier to avoid people, but he really didn’t want to buy another one.  He easily admitted that he was avoiding people, one person in particular. 

Niall was out, and while Harry lounged on their couch, he thought back to Friday night and his reaction to the alpha on the balcony. He still couldn’t figure out what was so frightening that would trigger his inner omega to take over his senses and run. Maybe he would never know. What truly worried Harry is why he would choose to drop instead of facing the situation. He knew deep down it was a primal instinct and often not a choice, but it was something he never wanted to submit to.  

Harry let out a frustrated groan and moved to sit up, feeling the slight burn in his bicep as he did so. He had already given up on trying to figure out why Louis had taken such an action to keep him out of a drop. He didn’t know Harry, and the fact that Louis went into action the moment Harry’s omega considered a drop was intriguing, to say the least. The fact that he took action at all was still a mystery. As far as Harry knew, alphas don’t go around yanking at strangers hair and growling in alpha tone to keep an unknown omega out of a drop. Why had Louis?

Harry shook his head in an attempt to get the thoughts out permanently. He would continue with school and avoid Louis, two simple tasks that he could easily control. Finally standing up, he moved to make himself some cheese on toast.  

He was just sitting back down on the couch to eat when Niall came through the door, Liam in tow.

“Hey,” Niall greeted. “What are you up to this lovely afternoon? Liam has a present for you.”

Harry had just enough time to put everything down before Liam was tossing an object at him.

“My phone!” Harry hugged it to his chest. “I’ve missed you so much.”

Niall interrupted his phone’s homecoming, bluntly asking, “Why did Louis have it?  And why is there a post-it note on it with Louis phone number?”

Harry still hadn’t said anything about Friday night to either of them. He wanted to figure things out before sharing.

“I don’t know?” Harry asked.

“According to Louis,” Liam stated, “you accidentally left it at the party. He says he found it on the balcony. How did he know it was yours?”

“I don’t know?” Harry said weakly.  “Did he say anything else?”

Liam raised his eyebrow, “He did. He said he hopes you’re doing well and to let him know if you need anything.”

“He said  _ what _ ?” Niall frantically looked between the two, clearly wanting an explanation.

Harry took a large intake of air, letting it out slowly before he began. “We met at the party, okay? We met and we talked for a little bit, kind of, and that’s it.”

Niall walked over and stood in front of Harry, hands on his hips.

“Let me get this straight,” he started slowly. “The two of you met, you talked, he had your phone, has now given you his phone number, and we are just now hearing about this?! Why didn’t you say something?!”

“I don’t know?”

Niall smacked him upside his head. “Stop answering questions with questions! Explain.”

“There’s not much to explain, Niall.” Harry could not give details, not yet at least. “I went to the bathroom to take a breather from all of the people and he walked in on me. He’s nice.”

Liam had come over to join Harry on the couch. “Of course he’s nice.”

Further conversation would have to wait as Harry’s phone started ringing. He had never been more happy to see his mum’s name on his caller ID.

Harry pointed to his phone and stood up. “It’s my mum. I’ll catch you later.”

\----

It was Wednesday and Harry had managed to avoid Louis so far. It wasn’t necessarily difficult as they were a year apart in college and studying two very different subjects. As far as Harry knew, Louis was studying sports medicine while playing football, while Harry was studying to be an art therapist. Two very different fields of work for two very different people.

Harry was sitting alone in the canteen, expecting Niall would join him at anytime.

As if on cue, Niall plopped down on the seat across from him and started in on the news of the day.

“So, I heard from Hannah Louis is still single. She found out when Louis’ broke it off with what’s-his-name and it’s been two weeks.  _ Two _ weeks! I think he likes you.”

Harry chuckled. “Niall, we met once in the bathroom and talked for a total of five minutes. I haven’t heard from him since.”

Niall threw his hands up in exasperation. “You could though, if you wanted! He gave you his number, Harry!  Have you at least texted him?”

“Nope.”

Niall moved to sit next to Harry, slinging his arm around his shoulders and pulling him in. It was nice, Harry had been feeling a bit touch deprived lately. He moved in closer to Niall.

“Harry, why don’t you text him or something? What is stopping you? You’ve been pining after him for a year now. He gave you his number and you’re not going to use it?”

Harry shook his head. “Technically, he gave his number to Liam. If he wants me to contact him, he needs to give me his number in person. You could have forged that post-it note for all I know.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

“Maybe. I’m okay with that though.” Harry shot Niall a grin and reached over to pull Niall’s tray of food to his side of the table. He pointed to his food, giving a silent command for Niall to stay where he was to eat.

Niall asked, “When’s the last time you hung out with Liam? We should find him so he can give you an even better hug.”

“I like your hugs, Niall. I appreciate them as always.”

As Harry cuddled into Niall’s side, he looked across the room, his eyes landing on Louis who was looking back with a frown.

“Shit,” Harry groaned.

Niall looked towards where Harry’s eyes were focused. 

“Oh,” he stated. “Not the best time for me to be hugging you, is it?”

He watched as Louis turned away, frown remaining in place. Niall slid back over to the other side of the table, but it was too late. Who knew what Louis thought of the situation.

Liam arrived at their table and sat next to Harry, slightly leaning over so their shoulders were touching. It felt nice.

“Party Saturday after the game. Are you guys in?”

Niall gave an enthusiastic, “Hell, yeah. I have nothing to do on Sunday which means I can get pissed with no regrets.”

Harry laughed. “Niall, every time you say ‘no regrets’ you wake up the next morning complaining about how you are never drinking that much again. I don’t understand why you feel it necessary to drink twice the amount as everyone else.”

Liam laughed. Niall scowled.

“I’m Irish, Harry. It is a well known fact that Irish men hold their liquor better and that must be proven. I must uphold my heritage.”

Harry rolled his eyes. “Yeah, okay.”

Harry took a bite of his sandwich and took the chance to glance over where Louis was sitting. He was gone. Or so he thought, as he immediately smelled a faint scent of dark cinnamon.

He was walking towards the exit but stopped at their table, giving Harry a timid wave. “Hi, Harry.  How are you doing?”

Niall and Liam both looked to Harry. He imagined they both had their eyebrows raised in question, but he was focused on Louis.

“I’m good, thank you.”

Louis asked, “Did you get my number or did Liam lose it?”

“Um.” Harry didn’t know what to say, but thankfully Louis continued.

“No worries. There’s a party after the game Saturday. Are you up for it?”

Harry stared at him for a moment because no, he was not up for it. Louis seemed to catch on and glanced between Niall and Liam.

“You guys are coming, right?”

Niall and Liam nodded and answered at the exact same time. “Yep.”

Louis looked back to Harry. “You should come, Harry. I promise you’ll have fun.”

There was no way Harry could refuse the hopeful expression Louis directed at him.  

“Yeah, I’ll be there. Wouldn’t miss it.”

Louis beamed. “Excellent! I’ll see all of you Saturday after the game. We are winning so celebration will be in order.”

Liam held out his hand in a fist bump, Louis returning the gesture. “Hell yeah! We are beating those bastards. And then getting very drunk to celebrate.”

Louis laughed and moved to leave. “See you guys later.”

With that, Louis continued out the door, Niall and Liam immediately turning to Harry with questioning looks on their faces.

“Oh, shove off, the both of you. Apparently he wants me to go, so I’ll go.”

Niall took one of his chips and threw it at Harry’s face. “Of course you will.”

Liam also threw a chip at Harry and proclaimed, “And this time, you will tell us all the dirty details.”

Harry shook his head. “I’m sure there will be none.”

\----

As with every game, Harry’s sole focus was on Louis. He was a brilliant player, skills well above others on the team. He may be smaller than most of the other guys, but that did not stop him in the slightest. He played bigger and better to compensate for his size; and he succeeded. He managed two out of the three goals, making the final score a 3-1 win. Celebrations would definitely be happening.  

Both Niall and Harry had agreed with Liam to meet up before the party, similar to last week as the event was taking place at the same location. Harry wasn’t worried. He wasn’t. Or maybe he was, but he was placing all the blame on the fact that Louis had singled him out when he stopped by their table earlier in the week. Harry was placing his trust in Louis that he would have fun.

Several hours later, Niall knocked on his bedroom door, opening it to find most of Harry’s wardrobe thrown about his room.

Niall’s eyes widened at the mess. “So, this is a new development. Since when do you throw your clothes around like this?”

Harry threw him a look. “Since I can’t find anything to wear tonight.”

Niall laughed. “Clearly you have plenty of things to choose from. Just pick something.”

“I can’t just  _ pick _ something, Niall, and you know why.”

“Fine. Wear one of your numerous pairs of black skinny jeans and that black shirt that is sheer in the front with some flower or pattern on it.”

“I’ve never worn that before.”

Niall rolled his eyes. “Yes, Captain Obvious. You’ve owned it for ages, but I’ve never seen you wear it. Go for it. Make an impression that Louis will never forget. It’s been two weeks since his breakup. You’re running out of time to really get his attention.”

Harry cringed. He was running out of time. He had never seen Louis make it past a three week mark before he was back with another bloke.

Harry pulled out the shirt and held it up for Niall.

“Are you sure? I feel like this is too dressy to wear to a college party.”

Harry could see Niall was thinking, finally asking, “Would you wear that to church?”

“No.”

“Would you wear that to a funeral?”

“Of course not, Niall!”

“Then it’s not too dressy. Now put it on, we need to leave soon and I know you’re going to take forever trying to fluff your hair, and two minutes to run your fingers through it and mess it up.”

Harry ignored him and moved to get dressed. While he liked the floral, he had never worn it. No time like the present, he supposed. He sent up a silent prayer and wished on a star that Louis wouldn’t hate it.

\----

The three of them arrived to the party that was in full swing, looking almost identical to the previous week. Harry couldn’t help but look around for the alpha that had sent him into an omega spiral. He saw no sign of danger as they moved towards the kitchen for drinks.

As with the previous week, Liam was off to another part of the house promptly after getting his drink, while Niall stayed behind, once again having a look of concern on his face.

He tentatively asked, “Harry, we left in a really big hurry last week and you didn’t look well. Are you sure you’re okay? I only see a house full of alphas, are you  _ positive _ you’re okay here?”

Harry could see Barbara walking into the room and sensed there would be a repeat of the previous week; Harry being left to fend for himself.

“I promise, Niall. I was just overwhelmed by all of the scents with so many alphas packed into this place. I’ll step outside for fresh air occasionally this time. I’m fine, so will you stop with that worried look?”

Niall smiled. “Okay. Just as a heads up Louis is on his way over here.”

“Shit. Are you positive about this shirt? I like it, but I’m just not sure about it yet.”

Niall gave an exaggerated sigh. “You look brilliant. Louis will love it. Now look confident because he’s almost here.” Niall gave a suggestive eyebrow wiggle and waved goodbye.

Harry turned to watch NIall walk away and found Louis squeezing through the last group of people before reaching the kitchen. Once through, he stopped dead in his tracks.  

“Oh,” was all he said, not moving any farther.

Harry looked back at him and swore both to himself and Niall. Louis didn’t like the shirt. That had to be it. Why was he not moving closer?

“Oh,” he repeated, giving Harry a once over.  He shook his head as if to clear his thoughts and proceeded to move closer into Harry’s space.

“Hey there, Curly!” He said in greeting. “You look amazing. I love the shirt. Like, a lot.”

Harry watched as a subtle flush ran into Louis cheeks. He could feel his own face flush. Probably much more obvious than Louis.

He looked down as he accepted the compliment. “Um, thank you. I wasn’t sure if it was too dressy or not.”

“No, it’s brilliant. You are the best dressed person here.”

Harry gave a timid smile, Louis’ eyes twinkling back at him. Harry suddenly realized the biggest change from last weeks party. The only scent he was breathing in was dark cinnamon. The other alphas scents having faded into the background. He wondered what that meant. He shook that thought away, tuning back into Louis.

“Do you want to dance?” Louis asked.

“Okay?”

Louis smiled. “Are you asking me if you want to dance?”

Harry gave a nervous laugh. “No. No, I mean yes, I would like to dance.”

“Excellent,” Louis held out his hand, Harry taking hold of it and followed Louis onto the dance floor.

Once they found an open space within the sea of people, Louis placed his hands on Harry’s hips and started moving in a fluid back and forth motion.  

“I’ll admit, Curly. I usually don’t dance facing my partner in this type of setting, but you are not turning around for a second. Not in that shirt.”

Louis moved his hands to the small of his back to pull Harry closer. He briefly wondered how Louis was managing the height difference, if he liked it, or if he would prefer a shorter dance partner. It made him a little nervous and he wasn’t sure if he should pull Louis in by his shoulders or if he would prefer around his waist.  

As it turned out, it didn’t matter. It was the alpha and he was walking towards them. He had that look of hunger in his eyes again. This time he could see a pure territorial look, as if the alpha owned him. Harry had never felt such a sensation in his life and he wasn’t sure what to do with it except to run. Again. He knew Louis was there this time, and he knew he would be safe with him, but that didn’t stop him from quickly moving back through the dance floor and out onto the balcony.  

It wasn’t cold out, but he was suddenly shivering as if it were the dead of winter. He didn’t know where Louis had gone. Harry thought that he would follow, but he was still inside.

Harry collapsed onto the ground, and made himself as small as possible, pulling his legs up and wrapping his arms around himself. He didn’t know how long he was by himself, but he heard Louis calling his name. He watched as he moved farther out onto the balcony, looking around frantically. He watched as he saw Louis take notice of him and he was by his side immediately. Louis sat on the ground and pulled Harry into his lap, holding him as tight as he possibly could.  

Harry’s knees dug into the concrete as he shrunk into Louis’ arms. He dug his nose into the crook of Louis neck and breathed in deeply.  

“He’s gone, baby,” Louis said as he managed to hold him tighter. “He’s gone.”

Harry let out a whimper and breathed Louis in. He mumbled into his neck, “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. This has never happened before. What is wrong with me, Lou?”

Louis turned his head and placed a kiss behind Harry’s ear.  

“There’s nothing wrong with you, love. I don’t know why your omega would have this reaction because of one person, but he’s gone.”

Harry was still shivering. He wanted to drop.  

Louis immediately released one of his hands from his shoulders and gripped the back of his hair. He didn’t pull hard, just enough to know that he was there.

“Don’t drop.” It wasn’t a command, but more of a desperate request. “Don’t drop, baby. I want you to stay here with me. Will you do that? Will you stay with me?”

Harry nodded as best as he could with his face still pressed into Louis neck.

“Good. Let it out, baby. Let it out.”

Harry deflated into Louis’ arms. He let his emotions run free as Louis ran his hand through Harry’s curls, still holding him tight. His shivering stopped as abruptly as it had started.

“I’m sorry,” Harry whispered. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize to me, love. Do not apologize for something you have no control over. I don’t know what happened to trigger this reaction, but it doesn’t matter. You didn’t intentionally decide to fall into this state, so don’t apologize.”

“Okay.”

“Okay,” Louis repeated. “Do you think you feel okay to stand up and leave? We can go back to mine if you want. Or I can take you home if you prefer.”

Harry sat up so he could face Louis, stating, “I don’t want to go home.”

“Then to my place, it is.”

Harry simply nodded and moved to stand up. He must have been on the ground longer than he thought, getting up definitely not an easy feight, his legs nearly asleep. Once up, he offered his hand to Louis and pulled him up as well. Louis immediately grabbed onto his hand and they slowly made their way back inside.  

Harry didn’t see Niall or Liam as they weaved their way through the house. He figured, knowing he was with Louis, they’d be just fine with a text. 

\----

Louis also lived close enough to walk, but in the opposite direction of where Harry and Niall lived. They walked in comfortable silence with Louis brushing his hand against Harry’s every once in awhile. Naturally, Harry would prefer to hold hands, but he thought maybe it was too soon for that.  Plus, there was no way Harry would make the first move. He had little time before Louis would be in another relationship, but that didn’t make him any braver. Niall would be disappointed.

Upon arriving at Louis’ flat, he unlocked the door and opened it with a flourish.

“Welcome to my humble abode, dear Harold.”  

They walked through a short entryway and Harry found himself in a small, but cozy living area. It was nice and welcoming and Harry loved it. Louis pointed towards his couch.

“Have a seat and relax,” Louis prompted and then asked, “Do you want anything to drink? Beer? Tea? Vegetable juice that my roommate purchased ages ago, but hasn’t been around to drink?”

Harry scrunched his nose in disgust. “While I like eating healthy, I think I’ll pass on the juice. Tea sounds nice though.”

Louis nodded and moved to the kitchen, calling over his shoulder. “How do you like your tea? I won’t give suggestions… yet.”

Harry smiled to himself. “A bit of milk and sugar, please.”

Louis peeked around the corner. “I said I wouldn’t give suggestions, but sugar, Harold?” He held up his hand to stop Harry from responding. “I always respect other people’s opinion on how they take their tea, but, I’m just saying. Sugar does not belong in tea.”

Louis moved back farther into the kitchen and Harry settled into the corner of the couch to wait. He pulled out his phone and began a google search. He wanted answers. He didn’t hear anything from Louis until he was walking back into the room with two cups of tea.

“Here you go, love. One tea with approval on the milk.” He handed it over with a wink and Harry couldn’t stop a giggle. The tea was still incredibly hot, so he set it on the small table by the couch to cool.

“Thank you,” he stated as Louis settled himself on the couch as well, leaving a few inches between them. While Louis wiggled around trying to get comfortable, Harry picked up his phone for just a moment, bookmarking a website that he would go back to later. He got momentarily distracted by another link that looked like it could be helpful.

“Whatcha looking at?” 

Harry locked his phone immediately and set it to the side. “Nothing. I’m sorry, that was rude of me to pull my phone out like that when I can google at home.”

Louis gave him a curious look, but said nothing.

Harry sighed. It wasn’t a big deal and he might as well share it with someone,

“It’s nothing. I was just googling a couple of omega forums. Maybe I can find out why my omega was triggered for no apparent reason. Maybe others have had the same experience.”

A dark looked flashed through Louis’ eyes. “No, Harry. Please don’t do that. Whether you find something or not, it’s not going to change anything. An omega drop is a primal instinct, you know that. Whether you read something or not, it’s not going to change anything.”

“Maybe not, but at least I could at least know that I’m not alone in this.”

Louis frowned. “I tell you what. I’ll research it for you. Or we can research it together if you insist on being a part of it. Please don’t go through forums of other peoples’ scary experiences by yourself.”

Harry didn’t know how to respond. This was the second time he’d ever been in Louis’ presence for an extended amount of time and he didn’t want to screw it up. Or at least more than he already had.

Louis gave a smile of reassurance. “Do you want to research it now or would you prefer to talk about something else? Or we could just pop in a movie and let our brains go to mush. Your choice.”

Harry didn’t know what to choose. He kind of just wanted to go to bed if he was honest with himself.

Thankfully, Louis made the choice for him. “It’s been a long night, how about we just chill and watch a movie. Sound good?”

Harry nodded in agreement and watched as Louis got up to grab the remote off of the coffee table, leaning back into the couch. He pulled up Netflix and turned to Harry.

“Again, your choice. What’s it going to be?”

Harry didn’t want to think about it, so picked one of the movies already on the display. “How about  _ The Pursuit of Happyness _ ?”

Louis smiled at him. “I’ve been meaning to watch that for years now! Perfect choice.”

He pulled up the movie and got it started while Harry finished his tea. Despite Louis not approving of the sugar, he had made it perfectly. They had both kicked off their shoes and Harry moved to prop his feet on the coffee table. It didn’t look new or expensive, so Harry took it as a sign to use it as an ottoman. Harry glanced over to find Louis sitting cross-legged on the couch, still sipping on his tea.  He was so beautiful.

Harry could already feel sleep approaching, but tried his best to stay alert. He was not going to let his time with Louis go to waste.

Before the movie fully started, Louis got up and took their empty cups into the kitchen, coming back with two bottles of water. He broke the seal on them, but left the cap on, setting one on the table by Harry, while tossing the second over to other side of the couch.  

Harry silently rejoiced when Louis sat down much closer to Harry. He kicked his legs up onto the coffee table and, once settled, the two of them were touching from shoulders to feet. Harry felt as though there was a wave of electricity running up and down his side that was pressed into Louis. It was comforting.

The comfort and warmth soon turned into Harry releasing all remaining tension caused by the night’s events at the party and he could feel the heaviness of his eyelids as he tried to remain awake. Just then, Louis moved, shuffling away from Harry towards the other end of the couch. Harry furrowed his brows, but didn’t say anything as he turned his attention back to the movie. He watched as Will Smith ran across the screen, always in a hurry to get to the next point in his life.

Harry felt a light tug on his elbow and he looked over to find Louis beckoning him over.

“You’re tired, love. Stretch out and you can use my lap as a pillow while we watch.”

When Harry didn’t move, Louis put more effort into pulling him over. He finally gave in and rearranged himself, pulling his feet onto the couch and settling his head on Louis’ lap.  

Looking up at him, Harry asked, “Why are you so nice to me?”

Louis furrowed his brows. “What do you mean? Why wouldn’t I be nice to you?”

Harry shook his head slightly. “No. I mean, it’s just that you don’t even know me. There was Wednesday when you stopped by our table to invite us to the party, and that went okay. But the two other times, I’ve been a mess. You don’t even know me.”

Louis looked down into his eyes. “What do you think we’re doing right now? I”m getting to know you. We’re getting to know each other.”

“I’m falling asleep on your sofa after spending a very short amount of time at a party. I don’t think this qualifies as a getting-to-know-you event.”

Louis had a look of possible guilt in his eyes. “I’m sorry, Hazza. I broke my promise.”

Harry’s mind turned to confusion. “Why? For what? What could you possibly be sorry for?”

Louis ran his hands through Harry’s hair. “I promised you that you would have fun tonight. You didn’t. I thought that was a promise I could keep, but I failed. I’m sorry.”

Harry smiled a tired smile. “There was no way you could know that guy would be there or that I would be thrown into another stupid omega takeover.”

“I know. I don’t like to break important promises though. I’ll find a way to make is up to you, I promise. That is a promise I can keep, no matter how long it takes.”

There seemed to be an unspoken agreement that that was the end of the conversation and they both turned their attention back to the movie. As Louis continued to run his fingers through his curls, Harry let sleep engulf him.  

\----

Harry woke with a start. Upon opening his eyes, he remembered he wasn’t at home; he was in Louis’ apartment. He took stock in his surrounding. He was still on Louis’ couch, but now had a blanket on top of him and a body pressed behind him, an arm draped over his stomach. Harry closed his eyes again. What did this mean? Why had Louis brought him back to his place? Well, he knew why. But why was he still here? He never would willingly let himself fall asleep at a stranger’s house. Not that Louis was exactly a stranger to him, but Harry was fairly certain he was a stranger to Louis.  

He must have made too much movement as he felt Louis stir behind him, still holding tight around Harry’s middle.

“Hey,” Louis croaked, sleep logged in his throat. “Are you feeling any better?”

“Yeah, I think so. What time is it?”

Harry moved to get up, Louis releasing him from his hold. He reached for his phone and found numerous texts and missed calls.

“Shit,” Harry groaned. “I forgot to text Niall or Liam. They’re going to think something happened. Shit.”

“To be fair,” Louis sounded a little more awake as he sat up as well, “something did happen.”

Harry gave him an unimpressed look, unsure if Louis could see it in the dark room.

“I should get home. They will send out a search party. They’re pretty protective. It’s like I have two additional overbearing parents, I swear.”

Louis let out a quiet laugh and stated, “I’m glad you have people looking out for you.”

“I suppose.” Harry moved to get off of the couch and repeated, “I should get going.”

Louis quickly moved to get up and follow Harry towards the door. “Now? Harry, it’s the middle of the night. You can take my bed and stay until morning. I’ll sleep on the couch.”

Louis had flipped a light on, and Harry looked around for his shoes.

“Harry,” Louis placed a hand on his bicep and turned him around. “I don’t want to be an overbearing parent or anything, but you’re safe here. It’s the middle of the night, love. If your friends are protective, they should have their phones turned on waiting to hear from you. Text them and let them know where you are and then you can take my bed.”

Harry looked back at his phone, finally looking for the time. It was two in the morning. It was likely Niall was still out partying while Liam was either at home or wandering the streets in search of Harry. He felt bad at that thought.  

Harry looked into Louis’ sincere eyes and relented. “Okay, I’ll stay.”

He watched as relief flooded through Louis’ eyes. He abandoned his shoes and allowed Louis to guide him through the living area and into an open bedroom door.  

“My roommate is never here,” Louis advised. “He pays half of the rent, but he is literally never here. I have no idea where he stays.” Louis pointed to a closed door. “That’s his room there. The other one is the bathroom.”

Louis flipped on a light to his room and Harry looked around in silence while Louis moved to a chest of drawers. 

“Let me get you something to sleep in. That shirt is so fucking perfect, I don’t want to ruin it.”

Harry flushed. He would have to thank Niall for making him wear it.

“Thank you,” Harry responded.

Louis turned around and handed over a pair of joggers and t-shirt. He looked Harry up and down.  “They’re going to be a bit small, sorry about that.”

“No problem. Thank you.” 

“You’re very welcome.” Louis gave him a warm smile and said, “Okay, well you know where the bathroom is and I’ll be on the couch.”

Harry did not want to kick Louis out of his own bed. He also knew that it was probably pointless to argue, but he would still try. 

“Louis, please. I can sleep on the couch.”

Louis held up his hand. “Don’t even try to argue.”

Harry ducked his head down momentarily before looking back in to Louis’ eyes. “Thank you, Lou.  For everything.”

“No problem, love. I’ll see you in the morning.”

He turned and left, softly closing the door behind him. As expected, it smelled strongly of Louis in the small room. Harry looked towards the large bed and silently groaned. There was no way he would be able to fall asleep. He had just woken up from a three hour nap, and while it would be comforting wrapped in Louis scent, he didn’t imagine sleep would come easily.  

He changed into the clothes Louis had provided, thankful to be rid of his skinny jeans, and climbed into bed. As he laid on his back, he wondered what Louis thought of him. He thought of his previous encounters and didn’t understand why he was here, being cared for by Louis. He let himself get caught up in thinking that maybe  _ he _ was Louis’ next relationship, but soon realized he didn’t want to be just a relationship. That may mean he would have Louis for a few months, only to be disregarded by him as he moved on to someone better. He let out a sigh and flipped onto his side, smushing his face into Louis’ pillow. He smelled so fucking good.  

Harry moved to check his phone, finding both Liam and Niall had responded to his quick text, both thankful that he was safe and telling him to have fun. Harry snorted. Right. He was about to pull up the omega forums that he had bookmarked when he heard a soft knock on the door. He quickly locked his phone and stuffed it under the pillow.

“Harry?” Louis whispered. “Hazza, are you awake?”

Harry couldn’t decide if he should pretend to be asleep or to respond. His back was to the door, so Louis wouldn’t be able to tell either way. Maybe. He decided for the truth.

“Yes.”

“Can I join you? Or is that too weird? You can say no.”

Harry smiled to himself. It sounded like he was nervous. He moved to flip onto his other side and found Louis standing in the doorway fiddling with the bottom of his shirt. He didn’t recall Louis taking clothes with him, but he was changed into joggers and a t-shirt as well. He didn’t know what to say. He didn’t want to sound desperate and in need of Louis’ touch, but he really wanted it. He lifted the side of the blanket in a silent invitation for Louis to join him.

Harry thought he could see Louis smiling as he walked towards the bed, but it was too dark to tell for sure. Louis slipped in to join Harry and they faced each other in the dark. Harry was once again struck with not knowing what to do. Should he turn over so Louis could be the big spoon as he had been when they were on the couch? Or stay as he was? Maybe lie on his back?  

It was as if Louis could read his thoughts. Again. He immediately moved and settled onto his back, opening his arms to welcome Harry in. Harry scooted over on the bed and snuggled up into Louis’ side, using his chest as a cushion. He breathed him in and quickly fell asleep to the feeling of Louis brushing his fingers through his hair.  

\----

When Harry woke in the morning, Louis was not beside him. He was both grateful and disappointed. He decided to lean towards grateful as he was incredibly hard and that could cause embarrassment for both of them. Harry blamed it on sleeping in Louis’ delicious scent. He laid there for several minutes to gain some control and listened for any sounds outside of the bedroom. He thought he may have heard some movement in the kitchen, maybe Louis making tea, but he couldn’t be sure.  

He pulled his phone out from under the pillow and found it was 9:28. He definitely hadn’t planned on sleeping that late and hoped Louis didn’t have plans for the morning. He sent a text to Niall asking if he could meet for lunch. Harry knew he would still be sleeping after his late night, so expected no answer.  

There was a soft knock on the door, followed by Louis poking his head in. Harry was facing the door this time and looked at Louis with sleepy eyes.

Louis gave him a small smile and softly spoke. “Oh good, you’re awake. I made you breakfast.”

“You didn’t have to do that,” Harry stated. His voice was still rough from sleep.

“It’s tea and cheese on toast. Or cereal if you prefer that. I’m not exactly the best cook so I’ll keep expectations at a bare minimum for now.” Louis eyes twinkled in the morning light.

Harry smiled and sat up. “Thanks, Lou.” 

He got to his feet and followed Louis out to the kitchen where the food was already prepared.  Clearly, he had been betting on Harry already being awake when he made it. 

Harry had expected things to be awkward after the previous night’s events, but it seemed Louis wouldn’t allow it.

“Did you sleep well?” Louis asked.

“I did. Probably the best I’ve slept in quite awhile if I’m honest.”

Louis beamed. “Good.”

Harry felt as if Louis was proud that he had a good night's sleep and couldn’t help but smile.

“Listen,” he continued. “I have to get to practice soon. I have a feeling it’s going to be a long day. I can lend you my spare key if you want to hang around.”

Harry shook his head. “No, I have a project I need to work on, so I should get going anyway. Thanks for the offer though.”

Louis looked genuinely interested when he asked, “A project for what? If you don’t mind me asking.”

“It’s for my art class. Nothing exciting, but maybe a little bit time consuming.”

“Do you think I could see it when it’s finished?”

Harry looked at him with surprise. Why would he want to see something Harry had drawn? Louis didn’t really strike him as someone who was into art. Did this mean he would stick around for awhile?  

He left the questions for later and responded, “It’s really not going to be anything good. But I guess so?”

Louis laughed. “Are you asking me if I can? Do you often answer questions with other questions?”

Harry flushed and looked down at his half eaten breakfast. “I’ve been told I do, actually. But yes, you can see it if you want.”

“Do you think I could have your phone number, Curly? Since Liam seemed to have lost my note when he returned your phone.”

Harry couldn’t tell if Louis was serious or not, but didn’t want to press the issue. “Sure.”

Louis unlocked his phone and handed it to Harry. Once he entered in his information he handed it back, Louis smiled and stated, “I’m sending you a text so you’ll have mine as well. Sound good?”

“Sounds good to me.”

He finished up the breakfast Louis had kindly made and got up to take the dishes to the sink.

“I’ve got it, Curly,” Louis stated as he took the dishes out of Harry’s hand.

“Thanks,” Harry replied. “I’m going to go get dressed and I can get out of your hair. I know you need to get going.”

Louis grabbed a jumper that had been sitting on the kitchen table. “Here, take this. It’s a little bigger than my shirt, so you can wear it instead of your sexy-as-fuck shirt from last night if you want.”

Harry couldn’t deny the fact that he would prefer to wear something else. He appreciated and loved that Louis liked the sheer floral, but he wasn’t quite comfortable wearing it in the light of day.  

He took the jumper from Louis’ hands and immediately knew it wasn’t his. It smelled of something, or someone, that wasn’t Louis. 

He furrowed his brows and looked at Louis. “This isn’t yours.”

Louis frowned. “Is that okay? It’s my roommate’s. I figured he wouldn’t miss it, at least not for awhile.”

Harry felt relief flood through him knowing it didn’t belong to someone from a previous relationship.  “No, this is good. I was just surprised is all. Thanks, Lou.”

Louis’ smile returned. “You’re welcome, love. Go get changed and I can walk you home before practice.”

“I’ll go get changed, but I live in the opposite direction of the field and I don’t want you to be late.”

Louis nodded. “True. Next time then.”

Harry turned back to head to the bedroom and Louis’ words resonated in his mind as he moved. Next time? Would there really be a next time? He smiled to himself at the thought. 

He changed quickly, folding Louis’ borrowed clothes and placing them at the foot of the bed. He found Louis putting his shoes on as Harry neared the door, appearing to be ready as well.

“You ready, Curly?”

Harry smiled. “I am.”

Louis opened the door and directed Harry outside, hand on the small of his back. They were about to part ways when Harry stopped and turned to Louis. “Thank you, Lou. For last night.”

Louis reached out and brushed his fingers over the top of Harry’s hand. “You’re welcome, love. I’m here to help you anytime you need, okay?”

Harry couldn’t think of anything he would ever need but accepted Louis’ offer. “Okay.”

They both smiled at each other, Harry a little more timid than the other, and they both turned to leave.

“I’ll see you later, Curly,” Louis said, waving back to Harry.

Harry waved. “See you later.”  

Harry wasn’t sure if that would happen, but kept hope that it would.

\----

Harry was sat in the canteen with Niall. Niall was definitely not happy. 

“So let me get this straight,” Niall stated. “Two weeks in a row, at the same party, you almost dropped. And you didn’t bother to tell me or Liam?”

Harry felt horrible at the hurt look in Niall’s eyes.

“I wanted to, Niall, I did,” he paused to search for the right words, but gave up. “I just didn’t know how.”

Niall glared at him. “Well, you just did a pretty good job of telling me now, so why not sooner? I wouldn’t have left you alone at that party.”

Harry shrugged. “I wasn’t alone. Louis was there. I mean, I guess technically I was alone the first time until he showed up, but he was there the entire time Friday night. He was brilliant.”

Niall grunted. “Okay, just, will you promise to tell me if this happens in the future? And not days later.”

“It’s only Saturday afternoon.”

“It’s been over a week since your first episode, Harry!”

Harry cringed. “Okay, fair. I promise to tell you if it happens again.”

“Thank you.” The serious expression lifted from Niall’s face. “Now! Tell me all about your adventures with Louis.”

Harry laughed. “I wouldn’t really classify them as adventures.”

“You know what I mean. Stop stalling.”

Harry decided to sidetrack for a moment. “Okay, I will, but I have to ask you something first.”

Niall raised his eyebrow in question. “Continue.” 

“Have you ever heard of an alpha stopping an omega from dropping?”

Niall shook his head. “Not personally, but it could be something that happens.”

Harry paused to think. “It’s just that, like, it seemed like Louis knew I was going to drop. Both times. Like, the first time I was just overwhelmed to begin with, and then mortified that it was happening in front of Louis. That made it a lot worse and I came so close to dropping. But it was like the moment I thought about it, he  _ knew _ .”

NIall pondered for a moment. “Well, you probably had a look of panic and he figured it may happen.”

“Yeah, but the second time was the exact same thing. As soon as the thought even entered my mind, he just  _ knew _ and did everything he could to make sure I didn’t drop. Both times. It was weird.”

Niall had his brows furrowed. “Okay, that is pretty impressive. We’ll have to ask Liam when he gets here. Or when he gets to our place tonight. Apparently practice is going a lot longer today. No idea why.”

They both finished up their meals and picked up their stuff to leave.  

Niall turned to him and asked, “You don’t have plans today, right? I need you to entertain me so I don’t have to work on my school work.”

“I have to come up with something to draw and then actually draw it. But I can do that while I entertain you or whatever.”

Niall jumped on the opportunity to give his opinion on what to draw. “It’s simple,” he stated. “Draw Louis. Better yet, have him come over and he can pose for you! He can be your muse.”

“Absolutely not.”

Niall wiggled his eyebrows. “Okay, I’ll be your muse.”  

Harry rolled his eyes and they headed back to their flat in silence. 

\---

Liam usually got out of football practice around four on Saturdays. He finally got to their flat at 7:30.  

Niall opened the door with a flourish. “It’s about time. I’m fucking starving and Harry was making me wait until you got here to order. Why the long practice?”

They both moved to the living room, Niall flopping onto the couch, while Liam crashed into the armchair. It had clearly been a long day.

“One of the guys got kicked off of the team.”

Niall and Harry both yelled out at the same time. “WHAT?!”

Liam continued. “Yeah, Josh, who was a starter, got kicked off. I mean, we have Drew now, and he’s brilliant. But the team has a lot of adjustments to make. In a way, it sucks with long practices and such, but once we get settled, Josh won’t be missed. Everyone thought he was creepy as fuck, but he’s a great player so coach kept him around.”

Harry questioned, “So why did he get kicked off the team if he was a great player?”

Liam shrugged. “I honestly have no idea. Rumor has it he was making people uncomfortable. I don’t think that would be a good enough reason for him to get kicked off the team though. I can only assume Louis must have found a solid reason and coach agreed with the decision.”

Harry’s eyes widened. “Louis?  Like, Louis Louis?”

Liam rolled his eyes. “Yes, Harry. The love of your life is both a hero and a villian. Josh is off the team, but now I’m being forced into extended practice time. I have things to do, people to see, places to go.”

Niall cackled. “Now, now. Don’t make this about Zayn.”

“I’m not!”

“If you say so,” Niall stated sarcastically.

The mention of Zayn brought back Harry’s previous conversation with Niall.

“Hey Liam,” Harry began. “Have you ever known if Zayn is going to drop? Like, beforehand? Can you tell he’s really overwhelmed and his inner omega wants to drop?”

Liam gave a questionable look. “It’s only happened once or twice since we mated, but yeah. Thankfully, I was able to pull him back before the actual drop though. Why do you ask?”

Harry and Niall both looked at each other with widened eyes, Niall being the first to speak.

“First of all, for the record, Harry’s an idiot and didn’t tell us that he almost dropped two Fridays in a row at the same party.”

Naturally, Liam interrupted, “What? Harry! What happened?”

Niall continued, “That’s currently not the point, but I fully support you returning back to that conversation to yell at him.”

Harry mumbled under his breath. “I hate you.”

Niall beamed at him and turned back to Liam. “Anyway, both times Louis was there and I guess he knew when Harry’s inner omega was wanting to drop. Apparently, both times Louis knew when Harry immediately had the thought and stopped it from happening.”

Liam turned to Harry and asked, “Really? Is that true?”

Harry sighed. “Yes, Liam. Niall speaks the truth.”

“Thanks for believing me,” Niall mumbled under his breath.

Liam ignored the comment. “Harry, that’s a mate thing. Your average alpha isn’t going to know or feel that. It’s something between mates.”

Harry looked skeptical. “Is it  _ only _ a mate thing? I’m sure it can happen even if people aren’t mates.”

“Maybe, but I’ve never known it to happen.”

“Just a friendly reminder,” Niall stated. “Have you noticed that it’s been almost three weeks since Louis, the serial monogamist, has even been seen flirting with another guy? Nothing. In over a year of watching Harry pine over him, that is an absolute record.” Niall stabbed his finger in Harry’s direction. “You and Louis are mates! Everyone agrees that the stars have finally aligned! I can retire from my role as Cupid and will start interviews for a replacement immediately.”

Harry groaned. “Shut up, Niall. Nothing has changed.”

“Yes, it has,” Liam stated. “For once, I’m with Niall on this.”

\----

The three of them had finished their takeaway and were lounging in the living room, all admittedly procrastinating from any school work.

Harry’s phone pinged with an incoming text message. Usually the only texts he received were from the guys he was sitting with, so it took him by surprise. It seemed to take Niall and Liam by surprise as well as all three looked towards Harry’s phone. Niall moved the fastest, the message still displayed on the screen without needing Harry to unlock the phone.

Harry watched as Niall’s expression changed to excitement as he read the text. “It’s Louis.”

Harry perked up, but attempted to look neutral. “Can I have my phone so I can read it, please?”

“No.”

Liam laughed at Harry’s scrunched up face.

Harry made grabby hands for his phone. “Please, Niall?”

Niall let out a huff and handed it over. “Fine. He wants to know what you’re doing tomorrow night.”

Liam asked, “He seriously asked that? We have a long day of practice tomorrow. How is he not going to crash afterwards?”

Niall turned to Liam. “Clearly, he has better strength and endurance. And he loves Harry and will do anything for him.”

“He doesn’t love me,” Harry stated.

“Yes, he does,” Niall challenged. “Now tell him you have no plans.”

Harry wanted to, but he had his project to complete by Monday. Maybe if last night hadn’t happened and he could have focused this morning, he would have had it completed, or at least a part of it. But now he was running out of time. Although, it was possible he was running out of time with Louis too.  He took too long to respond and another text came through.

_ Louis: If you’re busy I understand. I know you said you had an art project to do. xx _

Niall interrupted his thoughts. “I’m serious, Harry. I mean, I honestly don’t think he’s going to be moving into a relationship with anyone else, but don’t pass up the opportunity. You have all day to work on your project.”

Niall was right. He hated when Niall was right. Harry looked over to Liam and asked, “Do you think Louis knows? About how an alpha can prevent their mate from dropping?”

Liam appeared to give it thought before responding. “Probably. It’s kind of an Alpha 101 subject in school. I forgot about it until it happened with Zayn, but Louis has helped you twice now so I’d imagine he knows.”

“Oh,” was all Harry could think to respond.

Niall sighed. “Will you just text him already? Tell him that you need to work on your project if you have to, but at least respond to him. Don’t leave him hanging.”

“Yes, Niall. Of course, Niall. I hate you, Niall.”

Niall stuck his tongue out at him but Harry put his attention back on his phone.

_ H: I need to have my drawing completed by Monday, but I can try to get it finished during the day.  Liam said you’ll probably have a long practice. _

_ H: Is that okay? _

Harry mentally crossed his fingers that Louis would be okay with that answer and was grateful when he received an immediate response back.

_ Louis: How about you work on it as long as you need and then you can show me the finished product? xx _

So Louis did want to see it? He was serious? Harry smiled to himself and happily responded.

_ H: I think I like that idea. Okay. _

_ Louis: You think?  ;) xx _

_ H: I always get nervous showing my stuff to people. _

_ Louis: I have a feeling I’ll like it no matter what. xx _

_ Louis: How about you text me when it’s finished, no matter what time of night it is. xx _

_ Louis: Sound good? xx _

_ H: Sounds good. :) _

_ Louis:  I’m excited to see it. xx _

_ Louis: I’ll talk to you tomorrow Curly. Sleep well. xx _

_ H: You too. xx _

Harry couldn’t help but smile to himself. Louis seemed genuinely interested. Shit, this was going to have to be the best drawing he’s ever done. Shit.

Harry jolted when Niall spoke up. “So, that seemed to have gone well. And the outcome is…?”

Harry rolled his eyes. “He said to text him when I was finished and that he would love to see it. He asked if he could come see it here, but I’ll probably take it to his place. You’re too nosy, Niall.”

Niall laughed. “You better finish it before it gets dark if you want to take it to his place. Your alpha is protective and won’t want you walking in the dark. Not after the past two Fridays that you failed to tell us about.”

Liam grunted, apparently too tired to use words.

Harry got up to head to his room. He had to work on this damn project.

\----

Harry didn’t get to bed until three in the morning. His brain was foggy, his eyes were heavy, but upon crawling into bed he spent far to long tossing and turning. The last time he had looked at his phone, it was 4:30 a.m.  

On the upside, after he had completed his research for art class, he found that all he needed to draw were three copies of a simple inanimate object, each one slightly different in both color and shape. He had completed one of them and figured he would have no problem getting the other two completed. The drawings fit in with the assignment well, but Harry was disappointed that Louis would not be impressed.  

It was almost three when he had finished, and he exited his bedroom with a flourish, yelling to Niall.  “Finished!”

Niall looked over from the couch with his eyebrows raised in expectation. “Where is it? I want to see.”

“No,” Harry said with finality.

“Why not? Are you going to show Louis?”

Harry shook his head. “Hopefully not, no.”

Niall scoffed. “Yes, you are. Now show me, let me give my opinion first.”

Harry sighed. Niall wouldn’t let it go so he might as well get it over with. He stood up to grab the three heavy pieces of paper and returned, carefully handing them to Niall. Niall briefly looked at each paper, handing them back to Harry when finished.

“You drew three apples,” Niall bluntly stated.

Harry rolled his eyes. “Brilliant deduction, Scooby.”

“Why did you draw three apples? That’s the project you’ve been putting off? Apples?”

“They’re not just apples, Niall,” Harry stated.

“Um, they kind of are.”

“Fine. They are. But it’s the meaning behind them. It’s more complicated than it looks.”

Niall laughed. “I certainly hope so, or else you’re failing. Anyway, did you text Louis to tell him you were finished?”

“No. He’s still at practice so I’ll wait.”

Niall sighed. “Text him now. And be sure to tell him you’re ready to show him three identical apples.”

Harry stood up to grab his phone. “Shut up.”

He heard Niall cackle as Harry left the room. He found his phone and sent Louis a text.

_ H: I finished my project, but I don’t think you’ll like it. Maybe we can do something else? _

It was only three and he figured Louis wouldn’t get it immediately as he was probably still in practice. He was pretty sure Liam usually got out at two on Sundays, but with team changes, who knows when he would get out. Harry briefly wondered if the rumors Liam spoke about were true. Would Louis really try and successfully get someone kicked off of the team? Why would he do that? What had the person done that their coach would agree to it?

Harry turned the volume up on his phone to make sure he would hear it and shut his eyes. He fell asleep immediately.  

Harry jumped when his phone pinged with an incoming text message.

_ Louis: No way Curly. I want to see this artwork. I don’t care if it’s a drawing of a bruised banana, I want to see it. xx _

_ Louis:  Please? _

Harry couldn’t hold in a laugh. He supposed if Louis was okay with spending time to see a drawing of a banana, three apples would surely be impressive.

_ Louis: I would also really like to see you. xx _

Harry felt butterflies in his stomach with the last text. He steeled himself and replied.

_ H: Niall laughed at what I drew. :( _

_ Louis: I’m not Niall. I promise I won’t laugh. xx _

_ H: Okay. Do you think maybe you could come here? It’s not much but I don’t want them to get ruined. _

_ Louis: I would love nothing more. 6? xx _

_ H: Okay. _

_ Louis: :) _

Harry sent Louis his address and made his way back out into the living room where Niall was still perched on the couch, computer open on his lap.

Harry asked, “Are you actually studying or are you watching porn?”

Niall scoffed. “I’m working on a paper. I have ten words so far. I’m thinking it’s almost time for a break.”

“Ten words? How many do you actually need?”

“Five-thousand by tomorrow afternoon.”

“Are you serious? Why do you put things like this off, Niall?”

Niall glared. “Probably the same reason you draw apples. I don’t know! It’s boring!”

“The faster you get it done, the sooner you can go watch porn,” Harry shrugged.  

“I don’t watch porn.”

Harry laughed. “Sure you don’t. Louis is coming over at six.”

Niall perked up. “Really? I get to finally meet your alpha dream-boat, love of your life who should no longer be a serial monogamist?”

Harry stabbed his finger in front of Niall’s face. “I swear, if you mention any of those words in front of Louis, I will hire someone to dispose of you. You’ll be out on the street in no time.”

Niall held his hands up in surrender. “I won’t, I won’t. Not that it would make a difference anyway.  Louis is yours to keep. You might as well accept the fact.”

Harry stayed silent. He wasn’t as sure as Niall and Liam. It seemed too easy that Louis would just like him. Well, as easy as it could be after over a year of pining. Not that Harry pined after him.  

Niall snapped him out of his thoughts. “You’re doing a shit job of accepting the fact, Harry. I can tell what you’re thinking.”

“No, you can’t.”

“Okay, I’d say it’s somewhere along the lines that you don’t believe Louis could just like you after the amount of time you’ve been pining for him. I’d bet that if you made any sort of move to get his attention long ago, you wouldn’t have wasted so much time watching him in other relationships. He would have been yours if he knew who you were before that first party this year.”

So maybe Niall was close. That was a first.

“That’s not what I was thinking.”

“Sure it wasn’t. Are you going to change out of joggers and a smelly t-shirt before Louis gets here?  It’s 5:30.”

“Shit.”

He got up and started towards his room, Niall calling after him, “Get changed, but don’t try too hard!”

Since when did Niall decide to becoming a dating expert? Not that this was a date.  

Harry stood in his closet, undecided on what to wear. Were skinny jeans too much if Louis knew Harry was at home all day? Probably. He settled on a newer pair of joggers, switching out his t-shirt for a clean Rolling Stones shirt.  

He had just gotten his room straightened up when the buzzer went off. He found Niall still on the couch as he walked past to let Louis up. While he waited for Louis to make it to his flat, he poked his head around the wall and asked, “How many words now?”

“Twenty-eight,” Niall squinted his eyes at Harry. “Don’t you say a word about my progress, or lack of, unless you want me spouting words like dream-boat and serial monogamist, ecetera, ecetera.”

Harry kept his mouth shut and was thankful for Louis’ knock on their door. He opened it to a Louis Tomlinson he rarely saw. He didn’t have his hair in a quiff. He didn’t have an imperfect perfect fringe. His hair was soft with no product in it and no headband like he would wear during games. He was beautiful. 

Louis smirked. “Do I get to come in, Curly?”

Harry flushed. “Sorry, yes, come in.”

Harry mentally shook his head to clear his thoughts and moved aside to allow Louis in, shutting the door behind him. They both walked through the short entryway, and found that Niall was still sat on the couch. Harry briefly wondered if he had moved at all throughout the day, until his eyes landed on a pile of empty bags of crisps.

Niall looked up and beamed. “Hi!,” he said brightly. “You must be Louis.”

Louis moved forward and gave a formal handshake to Niall. “That, I am. You must be Niall?”

Niall nodded in confirmation. “Best friend and fierce protector. So be nice to him or you won’t live to regret it.”

Louis laughed. Harry wanted to strangle Niall.

Louis put his hand to his heart and addressed Niall. “I promise to love and support Harry with everything I have. I will also abide by his protector’s rules and have him home and in bed by curfew.”

Harry stood beside Louis and dropped his face into his hands and mumbled, “Oh my God.”

He pulled his face back up and watched as both Niall and Louis turned to laugh at him.

“Well,” Niall nodded once. “I approve of him. You can stay, Louis. I have a feeling you may end up being more of a protector anyway.”

Louis beamed. “Thanks.”

Harry shook his head. “On that note, we’ll leave you to stare at your screen until it’s too late and you actually have to start typing.”

Niall threw an empty water bottle at him and missed by a wide margin. “Go show Louis your stupid drawings.”

Harry sighed and led the way to his bedroom. Once inside, he shut the door behind him. 

“Well,” Louis started, “I don’t know about Niall, but I love your drawings. I don’t even have to see them to know how talented you are.”

Harry gave him an unimpressed look. “You’ve never even seen any of my work before.”

Louis sat down on Harry’s bed and gave a reassuring smile. “What did you draw today, Curly?”

Harry pulled the drawings of the three apples off of his desk, sat down next to Louis, and handed them over.  

Much like Niall had done, Louis flipped through the pages quickly. Harry expected him to hand them back, but instead, Louis turned and laid all three pictures on the bed side by side.

Louis looked to Harry and softly asked, “Why apples? Tell me about them.”

Harry was taken aback. He hadn’t expected this sort of response. Not from a star football player majoring in a completely different field.

Harry wasn’t sure how to explain it to be honest. He started out with an eloquent, “Um.”

“Actually, I have a different question,” Louis stated. “What are you studying that would lead you to this project?” Louis smiled. “Tell me about you. Not the drawings.”

Harry felt his cheeks warm under Louis’ gaze.  

“Okay,” Harry started.

Louis interrupted. “Wait, one second.” Louis stood and gathered the drawings up, placing them back on Harry’s desk. He kicked his shoes off and climbed to the head of the bed, leaning back on the headboard. He patted the spot next to him to encourage Harry to join him.  

Harry moved and sat next to Louis, making himself smaller so he could be shoulder to shoulder with him. Louis took Harry’s hand, kissing the top of it and held tight.  

“Okay,” Louis prompted. “Continue.”

Harry laughed and relished in Louis’ hold. It grounded him and he easily found his words. He couldn’t fully concentrate when looking directly at Louis, so he looked down at their joined hands to continue.

“I’m majoring in art therapy. Like, I wanted to maybe study physical therapy, but there were so many courses in maths. I’m terrible at maths.”

Louis squeezed his hand. 

“So I thought about maybe doing graphic design because I like art. And then while I was researching, I learned about art therapy. So I’m studying kind of a combination of art and psychology.”

Harry pulled his eyes up to meet Louis’, who was already looking back at him, a small smile in place.

Louis asked, “What will you do when you finish school?”

Harry shrugged and kept eye contact with him. “I don’t know yet. I mean, there’s plenty I can do. I just haven’t decided, I guess.”

“Like what?” Louis asked.

Harry loved that Louis was interested. Besides his immediate family, no one had ever asked him about it.

“Well, I’m going to do an internship first. Probably at a local juvenile detention or a prison, maybe.”

Louis furrowed his brows, but prompted Harry to continue. “Then what?”

“A lot of people end up working with older people, but I think I’d prefer to work with kids. Maybe both. I’m not sure yet.”

Louis’ smile returned. “You have plenty of time to decide. Would you do different jobs based off of the age of the person?”

“They’d have some of the same characteristics like interpreting people’s artwork to see where they are mentally and such. But with sessions with kids, we would play more games and do things to release energy. With adults, it would be more like being their companion. Keeping them company and such. I would be there for them to talk with if they didn’t have anyone else. That sort of thing.” Harry shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ll see, I guess.”  

Louis moved their hands to intertwine their fingers.  

“That sounds amazing, Hazza. So how do the apples fit in with all of this?”

Harry gave a soft laugh. “Well, as you saw, they’re all pretty similar. But the small differences can end up meaning more when you interpret them. Our project was to take an inanimate object and draw three of them. I’m assuming we’ll analyze them in class. Choosing an apple as my inanimate object was pretty much due to having no idea what to draw. After staring blankly at my MacBook for so long, I finally zoned in on the Apple logo. And there we go.”

Louis let out an amused laugh. “I like your thinking, Curly.”

They sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes, Louis eventually moving to put his arm around Harry’s shoulder. Harry happily made himself smaller and allowed Louis to pull him into his chest.  Harry breathed in Louis scent and mentally purred in contentment.

Louis gave a kiss to the top of Harry’s head and stated, “If you ever want to go to another football celebratory party, the alpha won’t be there.”

Harry looked up in confusion. “What do you mean? How do you know?”

Louis smiled and said, “I told you Friday night. He’s gone, love. He’s off the team and he will not be attending events hosted by any members of the football team.”

Harry sat up straight to look at Louis directly. “You kicked him off of the team?!”

“It was a decision made by many people.”

Harry was shocked. “Louis, that was someone’s future. Liam said he was a really good player.”

“He still is a really good player, but he will need to find somewhere else to play.”

“But Louis…”

Louis interrupted. “He’s gone, baby. I can’t go into details of what happened. He played well on the field, but there were many things that occurred off of the field that caused the end of his career here. I know you’re thinking about the parties he was at, but the events that took place between the two of you had nothing to do with the final decision.”

There was no way there wasn’t a coincidence between the two actions. The alpha, Josh, had done nothing wrong at the party. Louis had to know that.

Harry nearly shouted in protest. “Louis, he did nothing wrong! You can’t kick him off of the team for that! He did nothing wrong!”

Louis released Harry from his arms completely and shuffled down the bed, pulling Harry with him.  With a pillow tucked under Harry’s head, Louis moved back up and hovered over him. Harry’s breath caught with how beautiful he was and momentarily forgot what they had been talking about.

“Harry Styles, listen to me,” Louis stated. He was both firm and gentle in tone. Harry was silent, looking up and giving Louis his full attention.

“We don’t know why you dropped or why you wanted to drop when it came to Josh. We may never know. Maybe there was a third factor and Josh was not involved at all. We don’t know, baby. You cannot be blamed for that.  _ He _ can’t be blamed for it. Not entirely, because we don’t have the answers. I can tell you that it is extremely rare for the coaches to bring in a third year football player and I think there was a reason they did so. Josh being kicked off the team was not a direct result of anything at the party.”

Louis reach up and lightly ran his fingers through Harry’s hair. “Josh knows why he’s off the team, Curly, and it’s not because of you. Understood?”  

Harry nodded his head in understanding. They were silent, Louis moving to lay on his side. He pulled Harry into him and Harry instinctively moved to fit snugly in Louis arms, breathing in dark cinnamon and relaxing immediately. He was unsure how long they remained in silence, wrapped up in each other’s arms.

A thought came into Harry’s mind, something he had been wondering for a very too long. 

“Lou?”

“Yes, love?”

“Have you ever dated or been in a relationship with someone taller than you?”

Harry felt Louis smile into his hair. “Not up until now, no.”

Butterflies took flight in Harry’s stomach. He pulled back out of Louis’ tight hold so he could look into  eyes. “Until now?”

Louis eyes twinkled in the light of Harry’s bedside lamp. “Yes,” he stated, “until now. Because I really like you, Harry Styles, and I like how tall you are.”

“Oh,” Harry eloquently responded. He didn’t know what to say. Did Louis know that he was Harry’s alpha? Was Liam wrong? Did Louis stopping his drop not mean anything after all?

He tucked himself back into Louis’ tight embrace. He felt Louis’ kiss the top of his head.

“I know what you’re thinking, Hazza.’

Harry let out a small laugh. “Niall says that all the time and he never gets it right.”

“You’re mine, Curly,” Louis planted another kiss to the top of his head. “I know that I’m your alpha. You have no idea how happy I was when I ran into you in the bathroom. I mean, besides finding you about to drop.”

Harry gave a muffled laugh, not having moved out of Louis’ embrace.

“I wanted to take you home and take care of you right then. I wanted to be Liam who was quickly leading you away from me.”

Harry once again pulled out of Louis’ embrace and smiled at him.

“I have a confession to make,” Harry stated.

“What’s that, love?”

“I’ve liked you for, like, forever.”  

Louis raised his eyebrows and Harry continued, “Okay, not forever, but for a really long time. At least a year.”

Louis ran his finger along Harry’s jaw. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

Harry gave a small huff. “You’re Louis Tomlinson. Captain of the football team. Everybody knows who you are, everybody loves you. And you were always in a relationship.”

Louis cringed. “I wish we would have met sooner, Curly. The guys I had relationships with were lovely, but they weren’t you. I want you.”

Louis went back to brushing his fingers through Harry’s curls.

“So, now what?” Harry asked.

Louis smiled. “Now we get up and I take you out on a proper date. I have big plans for us, Hazza.”

Harry was intrigued, and maybe a bit in love. He asked, “Like what?”

Louis moved and tenderly kissed Harry.

He pulled back and answered. “I am going to woo you. I’m going to learn how to cook for you. I’m going to make love to you and knot you.  And if I’m  _ really _ lucky, someday I’m going to bond with you.”

Harry whispered his response, “I like all of those things.”

“Good.” Louis moved to get up and stated, “Now let’s go tell Niall to stop calling me a serial monogamist.”

Harry let out an undignified squawk. “You knew he called you that?!”

Louis laughed. “Let’s go, Curly. We have plans to fulfill.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading and I really hope you enjoyed it! I gladly welcome kudos and nice comments! Should you feel so inclined, I would love you lots if you reblog my [fic post](http://2tiedships2.tumblr.com/post/172053304545/stars-will-align-for-us-16k-by-2tiedships2-the)!


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